Human Weakness
by Random Thoughts
Summary: Bakura can't stand human weakness, especially in himself. When he looks at Ryou, he feels weak. How will he rid himself of these feelings? Eventual yaoi, RB. Rated for improper use of cough syrup, general angst
1. Default Chapter

A/N: This is kind of strange so far, but please read it. It's only my second serious fic, and my only romance fic. I'd really like input, preferably not flames, because they make me cry. This is a yaoi fic, Ryou BakuraxYami Bakura. Don't like, don't read, okay?  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned YGO, it would be different than it is, and it wouldn't be the highly popular thing it is, in which case you probably wouldn't have heard of it, and you wouldn't be reading this. That's the one good thing about my not owning it, see?  
  
Bakura always watched his hikari at night. He wasn't sure why; to himself, he said he was amazed at what a coward Ryou was, and was just thinking about that. There was a feeling, though, that he didn't recognize, that he only felt when he looked at the soft-spoken, pale boy. Not disgust or disappointment. The one-time Tomb Robber hadn't been aware that he possessed a heart, but it was seeming as though it might be there. It ached every time Ryou took aspirin for his arm, which had never healed properly. It ached when Ryou flinched away from him, although Bakura hadn't hit him for months-well, weeks, at least. Since the yami had gotten a body, he'd been more sympathetic to others' pain. A little, anyway.  
  
When Bakura had been a spirit, it had been easier to escape his feelings about his hikari. He'd sat in his soul room, trying to ignore his light's sweet, innocent (ugh) thoughts. Unfortunately, in a separate body, it was harder. If anything, the soul link was stronger, pulling him physically closer to Ryou, practically screaming at him not to leave for an instant.  
  
Of course, he had a routine for avoidance nicely worked out. At least he thought so. He always just stood and stared at Ryou for about an hour every night, once the boy was asleep. He couldn't help it. It was as though he was entranced, just watching his light breathe, the curves of his face, the way his hair fell over his eyes.all of it was fascinating. The thought nearly made Bakura sick, but there it was. Ryou really was his opposite in many ways. The thief himself was all sharp angles and words, and glares, where his hikari was soft angles and easy smiles.  
  
Once Bakura could rip himself away from his light's side, he could go on to what he did afterwards. First, he went into the bathroom and drank half a bottle of whatever was in the medicine cabinet-usually Vicks or Robitussin. He didn't know why Ryou complained about the taste; it was not that different from Egyptian wine.  
  
It also helped him to forget his stupid human weakness. When he judged himself to be drowsy enough from the cough syrup, he'd go downstairs to the kitchen and eat coffee grounds. He always did this rather smugly, because Ryou had requested that he restrict his caffeine intake. Bakura loved the strange high that came from mixing the medicine that made you sleepy and the coffee that zinged you awake. He also loved that he could think of nothing but staying on his feet. That was excellent.  
  
The one thing Bakura needed never to do was to look into Ryou's room again. He'd lost control of himself once. Ryou had been having a nightmare, and his panic had come through the soul link. The Tomb Robber couldn't stop himself from entering the room, from holding his light's hand gently, from whispering words of comfort (as comforting as he could make them, given his personality). Almost instantly, Ryou's fear had stopped, replaced by a feeling of.happiness? Security? Bakura wasn't sure what it was. In any case, the boy's hand tightened in his, making it impossible to extricate himself. Not that it mattered. He was already caught, but not in any physical way. When he snapped out of it, the sun had risen, and Bakura was lying next to Ryou, whose arms were around him. Luckily, his light slept heavily, so he could get out without waking him, allowing the boy to know his yami's weakness.  
  
Bakura drank an entire bottle of cough syrup that day, and locked himself in his room, despite Ryou's pleading. He also took two aspirins, reasoning that since his hikari took them to numb pain, they'd probably help him with.whatever it was.  
  
After Bakura ate the coffee, he always went out. He didn't really remember what he did, but he felt fairly certain that it had to do with alcoholic beverages. Given the killer headaches he usually woke up with, it was probably a lot of alcohol.  
  
The worst part (or maybe the best) was that Ryou appeared not to notice anything. He carried on the way he always did, slightly wary of his yami, but generally the same sweet, cheerful boy he always was. The sweet, cheerful, innocent, beautiful boy that Bakura could not ignore, no matter how many painkillers he took. The boy who came dangerously close to exposing the Tomb Robber's weakness.  
  
  
  
I think something's wrong with Bakura. Every night he wakes me up, coming in my room. I thought at first that he was going to kill me, but now I don't think so. I don't know what's going on. I can't let him leave me. Since he got his own body, I've been so afraid that he would go. He thinks I'm weak. Maybe I am. I know one thing. I can't live without him, my dark side, my yami. I think I've been sending some of my thoughts across the soul bond, begging him to stay. He probably hasn't noticed. He's been acting so strangely. Another thing. My cough syrup keeps disappearing, along with my coffee. I'm sure he's responsible for the coffee (he loves caffeine), but cough syrup? I'm confused.I'll think about it in the morning.  
  
A/N: Yes, there is a plot to this. The first chapter is mostly an introduction, just ramblings to pull my thoughts together. I made Bakura act very unworried about his whole cough syrup and coffee thing, because I think he would be. He'd probably just see it as a means to the end, and not worry about addictions or anything. Anyway, following chapters will be clearer and more understandable. Please leave me a review on your way out, thanks! 


	2. Whose blood?

A/N: OMG! I honestly did not expect anyone to read this, much less like it! Thank you to everyone for your nice reviews! Sorry I took so long updating. I have to be in an angsty, slightly demented mood to write this, and although demented occurs frequently, I've been pretty happy as of late. The plot kind of starts in this chapter, more or less, although it's still sort of an introspective part, just to show exactly what both of them are thinking. Oh, also, I know at this point, there's not much yaoi yet, since I've never really showed them together, but there will be. By the way, flames are accepted. I use them to toast marshmallows.  
  
Disclaimer: I, Ms. Random Thoughts, own nothing that is herewith to be mentioned in this piece of fanfiction. I do solemnly swear I shall not pretend I do own it, unless I really feel like getting sued.  
  
Second A/N: I was just listening to the song that helped to inspire this fic, and I thought, why not post some of the lyrics? The song is Brain Damage by Pink Floyd (from the Dark Side of the Moon CD), and it reminds me of Bakura and Ryou, especially this last verse. Let me know what you think!  
  
The lunatic is in my head  
  
The lunatic is in my head You raise the blade You make the change You rearrange me 'til I'm sane You lock the door And throw away the key There's someone in my head, but it's not me.  
  
Bakura stared down at his bloody hands. What had happened? Had he-no, no, that was impossible. He hadn't been anywhere near home tonight.had he?  
  
The Tomb Robber wasn't stupid. He knew he was repeating himself. But he had to know. What. Had. He. Done?  
  
At least he knew where he was. Sort of. He was in the car-his own car, which was a distinct improvement over some nights he could mention.  
  
Bakura decided that the only way to find out whose blood was to test it. True to form, he tested it by tasting some off of his palm.  
  
"Oh, dear Ra, no," he whispered to himself. "No!" It was blood he knew better than that of anyone he'd known in Egypt. Blood he knew better than that of High Priest Set, better than that of his 'friend' Marik, better even than that of his mortal enemy, the Pharaoh. It was Ryou's blood. A lot of it. 'No!' he keened in silent agony, hating himself for his reaction. 'No!'  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I jerk awake, screaming "No!" I whip my head around in panic. I saw blood. My blood? I do a quick, frenzied check to make sure I'm all right. No. I'm fine. I'm fine. Not bleeding, anyway. My breathing is quick. My heart is beating too fast. I'm afraid I'll have a heart attack. Oh, god, my head hurts.  
  
Wait. My head hurts? No, no it doesn't. My head hurt, past tense.  
  
It comes to me in a flash. Our soul link! Our soul link?! I'm still terrified. I scream down the link, (Bakura! Yami, answer me!) He's blocked it off again. "Of course," I say wildly. "Of course!" I'm almost in hysterics. "He's leaving me!" I repeat it to myself. "No! Bakura, no!"  
  
I don't know what's wrong. I can't control myself, can't think in my usual, rational way. Tears run down my face as I slam my bedroom door open and race frantically down the hall.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'The Tomb Robber doesn't cry. I am not yet that weak,' Bakura sneered silently. He jammed the car into reverse gear, plowing into the car directly behind him. "Dammit!" he snarled, pulling forward, turning the wheel sharply and backing out again, disregarding the fact that he was slamming into the cars next to his as well. The tires squealed as he finally got out of the parking space. He noted coldly that he was at one of the local bars.  
  
Bakura was going eighty miles an hour, swerving back and forth across the lanes. He hesitated, then pulled into the parking lot of the only jeweler's in this part of Domino.  
  
The thief was in no mood for subtlety. He shattered the front window by kicking it hard, causing the alarms to blare. With a practiced eye, he quickly selected those items that looked to be most valuable. Then, he leapt back into the car, tossing what he had taken into the passenger seat. He allowed himself a vicious grin. Stealing had not really gotten any harder. Tires screaming in protest, he accelerated more quickly than the old four-door was ever meant to.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I can't think properly! My mind is blank. I'm in his room. Yes. I pull the covers off of the bed, even though I know he's not there. I rip open his dresser drawers, searching desperately for some clue, some sign of.What? 'He's gone, he's gone," my mind wails. "No he's not," I snap viciously at myself.  
  
Wait. What's this? My fingers find an empty bottle. 'Alcohol?' I wonder. No. It's an empty Robitussin bottle. I reach farther into the drawer. Yes, there's another. Cough syrup!  
  
It's almost funny. 'Bakura's been drinking cough syrup?' I laugh, but it comes out as a dry, wracking sob. At least I know where my cough syrup's been going. It all seems to make sense.or not.  
  
Where is he? Tears run down my face. My yami, my dark, what are you doing? Are you lying dead on the road somewhere, intoxicated by cough syrup?  
  
I can almost feel him there, at the other end of our bond. It's giving me a dreadful headache, that feeling of being almost-connected, almost-whole. I hear sirens in my head.or is that a burglar alarm?  
  
I am dimly aware of collapsing, of starting to black out. (Bakura!) I scream again. Then.nothing. My last thought is, "Curse this stupid weakness!" Or is it.?  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bakura drove to a forest preserve and put on every piece of jewelry he'd stolen. A ring for each finger, two chains around his neck, and a diamond tennis bracelet. It seemed to help. It had always helped, back in Egypt, to wear large amounts of purloined gold. He fingered an emerald ring. The blood on his hands was dry now. He could not bring himself to get it off.  
  
It was freezing. The broken passenger side window was letting in the cold winter air. 'Broken-? Wait a minute. When did that happen?'  
  
A ring jabbed his palm, causing him to bite back an exclamation of pain. 'Pain? What.?' Suddenly, he recalled an image of his hand punching out the glass of the car window. Not at all carefully, he scraped away the blood on his hands to reveal.cuts. Many, many cuts. He put a hand to his head, found blood there too, and more cuts like those from glass shards. "Explains the headache," he muttered to himself.  
  
A second later, full realization hit him. "It's not Ryou's blood," he said slowly. "It's mine."  
  
Just then, he felt a surge of nausea, and heard a far off scream of (Bakura!) in his head. With surprise, he identified the voice of his hikari. He felt something pulling at him, too strongly too resist. As he switched the transmission to 'drive', he swore at himself. "Curse this stupid weakness!"  
  
Bakura pressed the accelerator to the floor. A couple of people shouted profanities at him out of their car windows. He ignored them. He was being dragged by a will not his own.  
  
Eyes wild, he banged the front door open so hard that it fell off of one of its hinges. He bolted upstairs, snarling like a wild animal. He couldn't control himself, nor did he want to. Something was wrong. Ryou's room. It didn't even take a glance for him to know it was empty. His own room, then. The door was open, not how he'd left it.at least, he didn't think so.  
  
There was his young, pale light, on the floor unconscious, clutching one of the empty bottles of cough syrup the thief had hidden. Whatever was pulling him here still had not released its hold. It yanked him, almost brutally, to Ryou's side. He laid a finger on the boy's wrist, checking that the pulse was strong. Without thinking, he lifted his hikari in his arms and carried him back to his own bedroom. He placed him gently on the bed, and pried the bottle from Ryou's grasp. He pushed his light's hair away from his face, and gazed at him for a moment. Then he shook his head.  
  
"I can't let you remember this," he murmured. "I can't let you stop me." Their identical copies of the Millennium Ring glowed golden. 'He still wears it?' Bakura thought incredulously. He touched his light's Ring, then his own. The Rings grew even brighter. "If you'd just get out of my head," the Tomb Robber muttered, "I wouldn't have any problems. Now, go to sleep, and forget that you were ever in my room. Forget that you ever woke up, Ryou." The Rings flared brilliantly for a second, then grew dull. The force that had brought him to his hikari faded away. Ryou's breathing became slow and even.  
  
Oddly enough, Bakura felt like kissing the boy, as though it would seal the spell. He started to lean down, then snorted to himself. Instead, he laid the emerald ring he'd stolen on the night table. Then he whirled about, and in a swirl of gold and the light cloth he favored, he swept down the stairs into the kitchen. He snatched the coffee can, and walked out the door to the car.  
  
A/N: See what I mean about the plot kind of starting? Fear not, because next chapter will include other characters who do not appear to be going mad. Bakura: Why are you writing me with such erratic behavior? (Millennium Ring glows threateningly) Author: Because you're drinking cough syrup, eating coffee, and drinking excessively. You're bound to behave strangely. Anyway, this is angst, remember? Bakura: Fine. But you'd better be nicer to my hikari next time! Author (crosses fingers behind back): Of course I will! Absolutely! Anyway, please leave a review! Ja ne! 


	3. Strange problems

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to finish this third chapter! I was having a really hard time getting my ideas organized into a coherent story, but I finally did it! Thank you so much for all the nice reviews! I appreciate it! Oh, by the way, in this fic Ryou=Ryou Bakura, Bakura=Yami Bakura, Malik=Marik Ishtar, Marik=Yami Marik, Yugi=Yugi Moto, and Yami=Yami Yugi. Also, /blah/=italics. Flames will be used to burn many random things!  
  
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Yu-Gi-Oh, or any other brand name products I might happen to mention in here, so don't sue me, please. Not that you'd get much money from suing me anyway.  
  
Ryou Bakura was awakened by a loud, persistent knocking. "I'm coming," he called sleepily. He spotted an emerald ring on his nightstand and picked it up, puzzled. He shrugged and replaced it.  
  
Quickly pulling on a decent shirt, he hurried downstairs and opened the door. There were three police officers, two men and a woman, standing there.  
  
Ryou gaped at them, momentarily speechless. One of the officers said, "Are you Ryou Bakura?"  
  
"Um---yes," he replied. "I am, but---"  
  
"Then we'd like you to answer some questions," the officer told him.  
  
"Uh, what?" Ryou asked. His mind was drawing a blank. He couldn't remember having violated the law in any way.  
  
"You just have to answer a couple of questions," the officer repeated.  
  
Ryou drew in a deep breath, then said, "All right, but could you, um, tell me why you're here?"  
  
"There was a robbery at a jewelry store last night," the officer-whose badge read Sgt. Peter Sagara-informed him.  
  
Robbery. Finally, something clicked in the boy's brain. "Oh, no," he groaned. "Not again."  
  
"You know something about this?" the woman asked him.  
  
"Ah, well-" Ryou hedged. "Maybe---I'm not sure---"  
  
"Just answer the question, son," Officer Sagara said. "Do you know who did this?"  
  
"Wait! Don't you have to read me my rights?" Ryou asked in a flash of inspiration.  
  
The officer sighed. "That's only if we're arresting you, which we're not. We just have a picture on the store's security tape. You're not a suspect at present; the guy on the tape was a good three inches taller than you."  
  
"I'll have to call in to school," Ryou said. "Is that all right?"  
  
"As long as we're present," the officer told him. "Yes, that's fine."  
  
**Five minutes later**  
  
The school secretary, of course, knew who it had to have been on the security camera. "Oh, Ryou," she exclaimed when she heard. "I knew you'd get into trouble hanging around with that cousin of yours! He's been in the office nearly every school day, insulting the principal, the counselors-"  
  
"Um, yes, Ms. Hidako," Ryou said, hurriedly cutting her off. "So you'll tell my teachers that I'm not coming?"  
  
"I never thought you, of all people, would get in police trouble!" lamented Ms. Hidako. "Always so quiet and polite! Such a good student, unlike that other-"  
  
"Good-bye, Ms. Hidako," Ryou interrupted, hanging up the phone. Unfortunately, Officer Sagara had heard enough. "Mr. Bakura, don't feel that you have to protect anyone, even if he's your cousin. Please, tell us all you know."  
  
Ryou closed his eyes for a minute, then began telling all he knew.  
  
**Much earlier that morning**  
  
Malik, former Tomb Keeper, was woken by a harsh knock. He muttered an Egyptian curse under his breath, and went to answer the door. He swore again when he looked out the window to see who it was. It took him about five minutes to undo all the chains that held the front door shut, during which time the knocking continued.  
  
"What do you want?" he demanded. "This isn't an all night restaurant, you know, so if that's what it is-"  
  
"No," Bakura said shortly. "I need a place to stay for a day or so."  
  
"Ha," Malik said, rolling his eyes. "You have a house, remember, idiot? Are you that drunk?"  
  
Without even appearing to move, the Tomb Robber seized the blond boy by the throat. "You dare question me, Ishtar?" he hissed. "You're just a /child/. I won't explain myself to /you/."  
  
"Then what about explaining to me?" a low, threatening voice asked. "And put my hikari down. /Now/. Or you won't be given an opportunity to explain."  
  
Marik stood directly behind his light, an ominous shadow. The Millennium Rod glowed in one hand. A knife glistened in the other. Bakura slowly released Malik, knowing he did not have the advantage here. The Tomb Keeper grinned smugly, stepping back until he was level with his darker half.  
  
"So, you need a place to stay?" Marik looked thoughtful. "Why would that be, thief?"  
  
"Why do you care?" Bakura snapped.  
  
"Did Ryou finally get the guts to kick you out?" Malik asked casually. "All you bring him is trouble, after all."  
  
Bakura glared venomously at him. "If you value your life, Ishtar, you had better not ask me that again."  
  
"But it /is/ a good question," Marik pointed out. "Why would you come here, to the home of your greatest enemies aside from the Pharaoh---" he smiled, showing unnaturally sharp teeth, "when you could be in your own comfortable home, with a boy who is, in essence, the other half of your soul? At least you can be confident that /he/ will never stab you in the back." Malik snorted at this comment, but said nothing more.  
  
"I will pay you," Bakura snarled. "If you let me stay here, I will pay you in gold. If you ask no more questions, that is."  
  
"And if we refuse?" Marik asked, lifting an eyebrow.  
  
"You won't," Bakura stated confidently. "I'm sure you would both appreciate the money."  
  
Marik and Malik glanced at each other, conferring silently, Bakura realized with a pang. Then he angrily slammed the thought out of his mind.  
  
"Fine," Marik said. "You can stay here, /if/ you pay."  
  
"I told you I would."  
  
Marik and Malik both laughed. "As though we can take you on your word?" Malik asked.  
  
"As though I could take either of you on yours?" Bakura returned sharply. "If you don't have an extra room, I'll sleep on the floor."  
  
"We have an extra room," Marik informed him. "But it depends on how well you can pay." Without a word, Bakura took out the tennis bracelet from a pocket anyone else would have been hard pressed to find.  
  
"Ah. Good. You may sleep in the guest bedroom, then." Both the Egyptians then met his eyes with their piercing stares. "But stay quiet," Malik warned. "We do /not/ need trouble with the police."  
  
"Don't worry," Bakura said in disgust. "I used to rob the tombs of royalty. I've evaded priests, guards, and curses. This will be no trouble."  
  
"Fine. We're going back to bed," Marik said, as Malik took him by the arm. The two of them walked away.  
  
**Later, at the Bakura house**  
  
Officer Sagara was on a cell phone, listening intently. "Mm-hm. Uh-huh. Right, I'll let him know." He hung up. "Ryou, they've found your car." In the last hour and a half, Ryou and the sergeant had gotten to be friendly.  
  
"Where was it? Was my-um-cousin in it?" Ryou inquired eagerly.  
  
"It was in the river," the man replied grimly. "Blood all over the driver and passenger seats. One window was broken."  
  
Ryou stared at him. "What? B-but then, where's my cousin?"  
  
"We don't know," Sagara informed him. "They're combing the river further." He paused. "Ryou, your cousin wasn't involved in any gang activities, was he?"  
  
"No!" Ryou exclaimed. Then he stopped. "Well, I suppose he could have been. I-I don't know."  
  
"So, you're positive," Sagara asked for the fiftieth time. "Your cousin Bakura wasn't carrying any forms of identification? No driver's license, credit cards? Nothing?"  
  
"No," Ryou repeated. "He, well, he drives, but we look so much alike, he didn't bother to get a license of his own. He sometimes borrowed mine, I'm sorry about that, I couldn't really stop him, I know it's illegal. But he didn't take it this time, you saw my license---" he trailed off.  
  
The officer could see that the white-haired boy was upset. "All right, Ryou. It's going to be fine. Now, you're sure none of your friends would be hiding your cousin?"  
  
"Yes, I'm sure," Ryou answered faintly. "I'm sorry, he might have friends I don't know about somewhere."  
  
Sagara frowned. "And you said his most likely flight destination would be Egypt? Why is that?"  
  
Ryou looked at the sergeant and said, "Well, I don't-ah-you see, my father-- -would you please hold on a minute?" The headache that had been nagging at him suddenly intensified. The room seemed to spin. "I'm sorry-" Ryou managed, before he collapsed to the floor.  
  
Sagara stared in alarm, then phoned the nearest hospital.  
  
**The Ishtar household**  
  
"Damn it!" Bakura muttered. "Not again!"  
  
Marik gazed coolly at him. "What?"  
  
"I think-" Bakura began, steadying himself against a wall. "Ryou's passed out again, I think."  
  
"You /think/?" the other spirit asked. "What-" He mentally touched Bakura's soul link. His eyes widened, and he, too, fell against a wall.  
  
*What's the matter?* Malik asked, alarmed. *What the hell-*  
  
**It's that idiot!** Marik replied angrily. **I'll explain later.**  
  
"You idiot!" Marik hit Bakura across the face. "What have you done to your soul link?"  
  
"I closed it," Bakura said, furious. "What is it to you? You have such a cozy little relationship with your hikari, you can't imagine that others don't?"  
  
"You fool." Marik's tone was cold. "I think I'll explain something to you now that you should have figured out yourself."  
  
A/N: Well, there was chapter three! I'll probably have more Ryou POV next chapter or the chapter after that, when it'll get a bit weird again. I'll try to update sooner next time. Please leave a review! ^_^ 


	4. Pain in the head

A/N: Sorry about the wait for this chapter. My mom's been having some medical problems, and I've been insanely busy helping her out, this, of course, in addition to all my homework. I haven't had time to read fanfiction, much less write it, so I'm really sorry. Thank you so much, everyone who reviewed. It's very, very appreciated. ^___^ I'll try to update sooner next time.  
  
Beep...beep...beep...  
  
I...where am I...I can't see. It's too bright. My eyes, my head, they hurt...Bakura? I think I've said it out loud, but I can't hear...can't feel anything... No, I can. Something's beeping...I'm...where? Where is he? I don't remember, I think I should, oh, no...  
  
"Ryou?" A voice, not in my head where it should be, outside. That's funny. I laugh to myself. A voice should be in my head. Ha ha.  
  
"That laugh doesn't sound normal." That voice again. Outside. It sounds worried, I think. I wonder why? It's so much easier to tell when the voice is in your head...  
  
"Ryou, can you hear us?" A different voice.  
  
"Too bright." Huh. I heard myself that time. Not in my head though. That's funny again, but my head still hurts, and I can't laugh. "Can't see..."  
  
"I'll turn off some of these lights." The second voice again. Why do they keep talking like that? Too loud, and I can't hear. That's funny enough to giggle, even through my headache. No, giggling is stupid. I sound like a girl. Wha...?  
  
"How is he?" Another voice out loud. I want them to be quiet, I can't hear myself...  
  
"He's semi-conscious, but he might be hallucinating, the doctor says."  
  
"Jeez...Yug, do you and Yami know what's going on?"  
  
"Oh, yeah, this is some kind of weird soul link thing, right?"  
  
"Yes, we're trying to figure it out. The doctor said they think it's shock over his cousin's disappearance. They're not very upset about it..."  
  
I wish they'd go away. And there's still that beeping noise. Maybe Bakura's playing with the microwave again. No, he took my car, and cars don't beep.  
  
"Well, they do, but not like a microwave." Hmm. I said that out loud again.  
  
"Ryou, you're awake!" Oh, yes, that's Yugi. I know him, yes...I wish they'd stop talking out loud, though. Maybe if they get Bakura here, he'll talk in my head. He's the one who talks in my head. So much nicer than talking outside.  
  
"Where...Bakura?" I realize, distantly, that I don't sound very good. They won't understand.  
  
"Should I tell him?" He's whispering, but it's still too loud, I can still hear...I want Bakura. He'll understand. He'll be angry, though. He's always angry, except last night when he...  
  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
  
*earlier, at the Ishtar house*  
  
"How dare you-" Bakura started.  
  
"Shut up," Marik snapped. "You don't even know what you've done."  
  
*What has he done?* Malik asked. *You're making it very difficult to concentrate on calculus,* he added.  
  
**I'm not sure exactly what he's done,** Marik told his hikari. **I have to- **  
  
"Stop it!" Bakura snarled. "Talk to me, not your stupid pet hikari!"  
  
"Shut up," Marik repeated. "You are a danger to everyone right now. You will listen to what I have to say, /now/." **If you can get back here, do so,** he said silently to Malik. **I might need you.**  
  
*Fine. As though I care about school,* Malik replied disgustedly.  
  
"You have, it seems, stretched the limits of your soul link," Marik told Bakura. The Tomb Robber glared, but said nothing. "I don't know if it's broken beyond repair or not. It may be, in which case..."  
  
*Dammit*  
  
**What?**  
  
*Ryou passed out. The office just informed the Pharaoh's brat's little gang. They're all going to the hospital.*  
  
**Get home. Now.** Marik's tone was grim.  
  
Malik was startled, something that didn't happen to him very often. *I'm coming. They'll suspect something, though.*  
  
**I don't care.** Marik sounded very strained. **A police investigation is the least of our problems.**  
  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
  
The hospital machine suddenly started beeping quickly. Ryou's eyes moved insanely fast behind his eyelids, then opened. The Millennium Ring, which had been removed by the hospital staff, was around the white-haired boy's neck again. It glowed brilliantly.../too/ brilliantly. Everyone in the room was suddenly stricken with a terrible headache.  
  
What's going on, Yami? Yugi cried.  
  
I...don't...know, aibou Yami seemed to be suffering the most. He was having a hard time speaking.  
  
Yami! Yugi 'shouted' in alarm.  
  
Ryou-quiet, mild-mannered Ryou-sat up suddenly, and screamed. It sounded like some sort of wild animal in mortal pain. He howled and keened as the others held their heads. Yami fell to the floor, unconscious, as Yugi went to his knees beside him. Jounouchi half shoved his sister out the door. The heart monitor beeped wildly. There were shouts in the hallway, and a doctor and several nurses burst in.  
  
Then, as suddenly as it had started, it came to an end. Ryou's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he collapsed back onto the bed.  
  
Everyone's headaches were gone. The heart monitor returned to a slow, steady rhythm. Yami woke up and tried to reassure a panic-stricken Yugi that he was fine, really. This left the others to try and explain what had happened to the confused medical staff.  
  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
  
(AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!)  
  
What was...it hurt so much for a moment, I can't...I'm so tired, and my head still hurts...I can't remember, what was I thinking about? I don't know...  
  
A/N: Yeah, that was kinda weird again... So, um, please leave a review! Thanks! 


End file.
